Typical PV cells of the first generation comprise large area p-n-junctions that are formed in doped silicon. Such PV cells have a passivation layer on a rear surface and electrical contacts penetrate through the passivation layer to contact selected highly doped regions of the silicon.
The alignment of the contacts relative to the selected highly doped regions of the silicon and electrical properties of the contact material influence the efficiency of the solar cell and there is a need for improvement.